Work for Urartu Museum on way in Van Castle

Restoration on the walls of Van Castle in East Anatolia has begun following a new initiative from the Culture and Tourism Ministry. 

Urartu artifacts will be displayed at a museum to be built in theVan Castle [Credit: AA/Hurriyet]

The ministry has allocated a budget of 2.29 million Turkish Liras for the restoration, Regional Director of Monuments Cemil Karabayram recently told Anatolia news agency. 

The walls in the castle date back to the 16th century and have undergone restorations at various times, Karabayram said, adding that the present work would restore 70 percent of the walls and would ensure that the structure would not be affected by bad weather conditions. 

Karabayram also said archaeological excavations were continuing around the castle. 

“An Urartu Museum will be built in the northern part of the castle. All works from the Urartu period will be displayed there. The construction of the museum will begin soon,” the director said. The Urartu kingdom, an Iron Age polity that lasted from the ninth to the sixth centuries B.C., was centered on Van, which was then known as Tushpa.  

Source: Hurriyet Daily News [May 22, 2012]